The invention relates to aircraft cargo doors and vents, and more particularly, to an aircraft vent and cargo door locking mechanism that provides for the opening, closing, and locking of an aircraft cargo door and vent door.
The doors of modern commercial aircraft are often provided with vent-latch interlock assemblies. A typical vent-latch interlock assembly includes a small pressure vent door that is seated in an opening formed in the aircraft cabin door. A drive linkage is connected between the pressure vent door and a latch assembly that controls the opening, closing, and locking of the aircraft cabin door. The drive linkage is arranged so that it will not close the pressure vent door until the associated aircraft cabin door is latched and locked. Consequently, in the event the aircraft cabin door is not properly closed, the open pressure vent door prevents the aircraft from being pressurized, thus requiring aircraft personnel to take note that there is a problem with the cabin door that requires attention. Moreover, a typical drive linkage is arranged so that, before the latch assembly is actuated to open the aircraft cabin door, the pressure vent door is initially opened. The pressure vent door and the drive linkage are further constructed so that, when the aircraft""s cabin pressure is greater than the ambient pressure, the pressure vent door will not open, and the drive linkage will not move. Since the drive linkage is integrally connected to the latch assembly, this xe2x80x9clock-outxe2x80x9d of the drive linkage prevents the actuation of the latch assembly and the unlocking and opening of the aircraft door. Thus, a pressure vent door assembly is well-suited for installation to an aircraft cabin door to prevent the door from being opened while the aircraft is in pressurized flight. The pressure vent door and the drive linkage are further configured so that, in the event that the ambient pressure is substantially greater than the aircraft cabin pressure, the pressure vent door will open. This allows air to bleed into the aircraft to reduce the pressure differential between the inside of the aircraft and the ambient environment. The minimization of this pressure differential reduces the force imposed on the aircraft by the surrounding atmosphere.
Although current and more modern commercial aircraft are typically equipped with such vent-latch assemblies, many of the older commercial aircraft are not. Thus, it has become necessary to modify older commercial aircraft with the installation of vent-latch assemblies. One such area in the aircraft industry that typically utilizes older aircraft and requires the retrofitting installation of vent-latch assemblies is commercial cargo aircraft.
Commercial cargo aircraft provide unique concerns and design considerations over passenger aircraft in that cargo aircraft provide a large cargo door provided in the side of the fuselage. These cargo doors typically have their own latching mechanisms that are not tied into a vent-latch system. Since the cargo doors of cargo aircraft typically do not contain windows or openings therein, a vent-latch assembly similar to those provided in cabin doors of passenger aircraft cannot be installed within the cargo doors. To modify the cargo doors by cutting a vent door opening in the cargo door raises too many structural and design concerns that are beyond the scope and cost of the modifications to the cargo aircraft. In addition, due to the size of the cargo doors and the loads that the cargo aircraft carry, the cargo doors often require a secondary locking system or backup locking mechanism to prevent the cargo door from unwantedly opening.
Thus, it would be desirable to provide an aircraft vent and cargo door locking mechanism that provides for the opening, closing, and locking of a cargo door and vent door while not affecting the structural integrity of the cargo door. In addition, it would be desirable to provide an aircraft vent and cargo door locking mechanism that provides a secondary locking system or back-up locking mechanism. It would also be desirable to provide an aircraft vent and cargo door locking mechanism that is simple, inexpensive, reliable, and easy to maintain.
The present invention provides an aircraft vent and cargo door locking mechanism for ensuring the opening, closing, and locking of a cargo door in a cargo door opening formed in an aircraft fuselage. The invention provides a latch assembly for latching the cargo door to the fuselage. The latch assembly is connected to the fuselage and the cargo door for movement between a latched position, wherein the cargo door is in a closed position, and an unlatched position, wherein the cargo door may move to an open position. A locking assembly is connected to the cargo door for movement between a locked position, wherein the latch assembly is maintained in the latched position, and an unlocked position, wherein the latch assembly may move to the open position. A blocker assembly is connected to the cargo door for movement between a blocked position, wherein the blocking assembly engages and prohibits the locking and latch assemblies from moving to the unlocked and unlatched positions, respectively, and an unblocked position, wherein the blocking assembly is disengaged from the locking and latch assemblies, allowing said locking and latch assemblies to move to said unlocked and unlatched positions, respectively. An actuator is operatively coupled to the blocker assembly for actuating the blocker assembly between the blocked and unblocked position. A vent door is mounted adjacent an opening provided in the aircraft fuselage wherein the opening and the vent door are remote from the cargo door. The vent door is movable between a vent door closed position, wherein the adjacent opening is sealedly closed, and a vent door open position, wherein the adjacent opening is open. A biasing means biases the vent door towards the vent door open position. The actuator is also operatively coupled to the vent door to actuate the vent door between the vent door closed position and the vent door open position simultaneously with the actuation of the blocker assembly between the blocked and unblocked positions, respectively.
The latch assembly comprises a plurality of latches adjacently mounted along one side of the cargo door and an opposing surface of the fuselage. A torque tube is rotatably connected to the cargo door and operatively connected to each of the plurality of latches. A rotating means rotates the torque tube thus simultaneously actuating the latches between the latched position and the unlatched position.
The locking assembly comprises a gang bar pivotally mounted for movement between the locked position and the unlocked position. A plurality of swivel arm assemblies are pivotally connected to the gang bar and operatively connected to the plurality of latches. A moving means slides the gang bar between the locked and unlocked positions wherein the swivel arm assemblies move with the gang bar to lock and unlock the plurality of latches. Electronic sensors are mounted on the cargo door to indicate whether the gang bar is in the locked or unlocked position. A pair of lock blocks are connected to the gang bar, and the blocker assembly engages the lock blocks to ensure that the gang bar does not slide to the unlocked position.
The actuator provides a handle pivotally mounted to the cargo door. The handle may extend to both the interior and the exterior of the fuselage. At least one first push/pull cable is operatively connected to the handle and is operatively connected to the blocker assembly for moving the blocker assembly between the blocked and unblocked position in response to the rotation of the handle. A second push/pull cable is operatively connected to the handle and operatively connected to the vent door for moving the vent door between the vent door closed and open positions in response to rotation of the handle.